The Web has grown to become one of the basic necessities for at least 40% of the world population [1]. It has become part of our daily lives. We communicate with friends, family and coworkers, pay bills, buy products and services related to the traditional basic needs (food, shelter and clothing) through the web.

The Web was developed by Sir Tim-Berners Lee to ease difficulties of managing information exchange via the Internet. Communicating information and large amounts of data between physicists working at the European Organisation of Nuclear Research (CERN) was carried out via the Internet but in less efficient means [2].  The Web and other inventions for the Web were thus built on works of Hypertext Pioneers and Visionaries such as Vannever Bush, Paul Otlet, HG Wells, Doug Engelbart, Frank Halasz and Ted Nelson.

The Web has evolved from being just a one-way communication tool (Web 1.0) to a platform for interactive, collaborative, informative tools such as Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, LinkedIn, Google Docs, One Drive (Web 2.0). Users of these tools are encouraged to publish their own content. The power to create, update and “delete” data is given to the user with immersive, social and rich user experiences. As users interact on these platforms, social networks are created. Although social networks have been in existence on the internet since 1973, they are now one of the major basis of the Web 2.0 era.

Skillted aims to leverage social networks and a long existing means of trade, barter. Barter entails the exchange of goods and services for another. It encourages flexibility and enables saving. With Skillted, people with different skills are matched based on their interests and location and if need be their skills are bartered.

References
1. http://www.internetlivestats.com/internet-users/
2. http://moocs.southampton.ac.uk/websci/2014/02/21/open-hypermedia-web/
3. https://secure.ecs.soton.ac.uk/noteswiki/w/COMP6051/History
4. Lecture notes on Intro and Brief History of the web – http://www.edshare.soton.ac.uk/6599
5. Lecture notes on The New Web Literacy – http://www.edshare.soton.ac.uk/6614